Upcoming Webinars

Speakers

Wanda Thruston, DNP, APRN, RN 
Director of Access and Engagement  
American Association of Colleges of Nursing 

Dr. Wanda Thruston, Director of Access and Engagement at AACN, is a national and international leader in academic nursing and advancing fair and just access to health and well-being for all, with expertise in institutional transformation, leadership development, and systems-level strategy. A Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholar Fellow, she brings decades of experience in clinical practice with under-resourced populations, health policy, and academic leadership.  

At AACN, Dr. Thruston led the development and implementation of the Ecosystem of Excellence in Academic Nursing, a strategic framework designed to enhance institutional effectiveness and promote the success of students, staff, and faculty. She provides technical assistance, training, and consultation to HRSA-funded nursing schools and AACN member institutions—supporting strategies to expand access, strengthen student achievement, improve the institutional climate, and build academic environments where all individuals feel supported and prepared to succeed.  

Previously, she served as Special Assistant to the Dean at Indiana University School of Nursing, where she led the development of the Diversity Strategic Plan and co-created a university-wide pathway for DEI faculty promotion. She also led a large-scale assessment of health and well-being for Indiana’s second-largest K-12 district to to inform fair and effective resource allocation that meets the needs of all students. Dr. Thruston is committed to advancing environments where students, staff, and faculty thrive. 

Brigit Carter, PhD, RN, CCRN, FADLN, FAAN 
Chief Access and Engagement Officer 
American Association of Coll eges of Nursing 

Dr. Brigit Carter, Chief Access and Engagement Officer, joined AACN in February 2023. She is Professor Emerita at the Duke University School of Nursing, where she served as the Associate Dean for Diversity and Inclusion from 2018-2023. From 2015-2018, she served as the Director of the DUSON Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing program. Dr. Carter earned her BSN at North Carolina Central University in 1998, her Master of Science in Nursing Education from University of North Carolina at Greensboro in 2002, and her PhD in Nursing from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2009.  

Her current educational research is focused on understanding experiences of students with microaggressions and development of strategies to mitigate the impact of microaggressions. She also has a focus on strategies to increase historically marginalized students in nursing and understand individual level social determinants that are barriers to achieving nursing education. Dr. Carter is a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing, an Atlantic Fellow for Health Equity, and a Duke Teaching for Equity fellow. Dr. Carter retired from the U.S. Navy as a Commander after 28 years of service in January 2018. 

Susan Corbridge, PhD, APRN, FAANP, FNAP, FCCP, FAAN 
Chief Academic and Innovation Officer, 
American Association of Colleges of Nursing

Dr. Susan Corbridge is Chief Academic and Innovation Officer at AACN, where she provides leadership for AACN’s national academic and innovation portfolio, including competency-based education, academic–practice partnerships, faculty development, and emerging technologies. Dr. Corbridge earned her BSN from Northwestern University, an MS in Nursing as a Critical Care Clinical Nurse Specialist from Rush University, a post-master’s certificate as an Acute Care Nurse Practitioner from Rush University, and a PhD from the University of Illinois Chicago.  

A nationally recognized leader in nursing education, educational policy, and advanced practice, Dr. Corbridge has more than 37 years of experience as a clinician, educator, researcher, and healthcare l eader. She is Professor Emerita and former Executive Associate Dean at the University of Illinois Chicago and a Fellow of multiple national organizations, including the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, Institute of Medicine of Chicago, American College of Chest Physicians, National Academies of Practice, and American Academy of Nursing.

Speakers

Stephanie H. Hoelscher, DNP, RN, NI-BC, AIMP, CPHIMS, CHISP, FHIMSS 
Professor of Graduate Informatics and MSN Informatics Program Director
Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center

Dr. Steph Hoelscher is Professor of Graduate Informatics and MSN Informatics Program Director at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center. With nearly 30 years of experience across nursing and informatics, her work focuses on safely advancing AI, digital health, and intelligent systems to support clinician learning, decision-making, and safer patient care. She is the creator of the N.U.R.S.E.S. AI Literacy Framework, a practical and ethical approach to integrating AI into nursing practice and education, and serves as the inaugural chair of her institution’s AI Governance Council, leading efforts in AI education, research, practice, and responsible innovation. An ANCC board-certified informaticist and HIMSS Fellow, Dr. Hoelscher leads initiatives in AI readiness, EHR optimization, workflow redesign, and clinician burden reduction. Her scholarship spans AI literacy, ethics, cybersecurity, and emerging technologies in healthcare, and includes ongoing research to develop and evaluate tools that assess AI literacy, confidence, and ethical readiness across the nursing workforce. She serves as an AI advisor for EBSCO, is a past co-chair of the HIMSS Nursing Informatics Education & Networking Task Force, and a member of the new AMIA AI Task Force. Her work centers on ensuring technology enhances—rather than replaces—clinical judgment and compassionate care.

Katherine Taylor Pearson, DNP, RN, NI-BC, CLSSBB, CDH-E, CPBI, CPHIMS, CKM
President
American Nursing Informatics Association

Dr. Katherine Taylor Pearson is a nationally recognized nurse informaticist, educator, consultant, and healthcare technology leader with more than 35 years of nursing, military, and healthcare leadership experience. She currently serves as President of the American Nursing Informatics Association and as an Assistant Professor at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center School of Nursing. Dr. Taylor Pearson is a board-certified informatics nurse with expertise in clinical workflow redesign, artificial intelligence integration, cybersecurity, project management, Lean Six Sigma, data analytics, and digital health transformation. She has extensive experience advancing cybersecurity awareness for nurses and healthcare leaders, emphasizing patient safety, privacy, operational resilience, and the critical role of nursing in protecting digital health environments. She is also the creator of the Five Pillars of Nursing Informatics Collaboration, a framework that highlights the importance of academic-practice partnerships, professional organizations, healthcare systems, industry collaboration, and policy engagement in strengthening the nursing informatics workforce. A retired Army nurse and veteran leader, Dr. Taylor Pearson brings a unique perspective shaped by military service, healthcare operations, academic leadership, and national professional service. Her work focuses on preparing nurses to lead in technology-enabled healthcare environments while keeping patients, clinicians, safety, ethics, equity, and collaboration at the center of digital transformation.

Speaker

Olivia Livernois, MSN, FNP-BC
Family Nurse Practitioner
Nursing Program Specialist, DDx by Sketchy

Olivia Livernois is a practicing Family Nurse Practitioner, educator, and Nursing Program Specialist at Sketchy. She collaborates with nurse practitioner programs nationwide to align clinical reasoning, communication, and virtual simulation-based learning with curricular goals and competency frameworks. Her clinical background spans critical care, occupational health, hospice, and urgent care, and she currently practices in urgent care and occupational health/primary care settings, delivering accessible, real-world care to diverse patient populations. Olivia is passionate about advancing innovative, student-centered learning that strengthens diagnostic reasoning and prepares learners for high-stakes clinical practice.

Speakers

Coming soon!

Speakers

Jamie Robinson, PhD, RN, CNL 
Associate Professor/Associate Director, School of Nursing 
James Madison University

Dr. Jamie Robinson is an Associate Professor and Associate Director for Undergraduate Nursing at the School of Nursing at James Madison University. She provides leadership for undergraduate nursing education across BSN and RN to BSN pathways and brings extensive experience in nursing practice, higher education, and academic leadership. Her scholarship focuses on competency-based nursing education, curriculum transformation, authentic assessment of clinical judgment, and operationalizing the AACN Essentials to strengthen nursing education. Through this work, she develops practical strategies that align curriculum, assessment, learner progression, and program outcomes to prepare nurses for evolving healthcare environments and advance professional nursing practice. Dr. Robinson has contributed to national efforts to advance competency-based nursing education through scholarship and faculty development and has collaborated internationally on innovative educational partnerships and global learning initiatives. Her current research explores competency measurement, educational innovation, and academic-practice partnerships that strengthen nursing education, workforce readiness, and healthcare outcomes.
 

Rhonda Williams, DNP, RN, CNE 
RN-BSN Program Coordinator and Teaching Professor 
Ascension Via Christi-Wichita State University School of Nursing 

Dr. Rhonda Williams is a Teaching Professor and Coordinator of the RN to BSN Program at the Ascension Via Christi-Wichita State University School of Nursing. She holds a Doctor of Nursing Practice in Educational Leadership and a Master of Science in Nursing Education and is a Certified Nurse Educ ator. As RN to BSN Program Coordinator, she provides leadership for curriculum development, program evaluation, accreditation alignment, faculty support, student success initiatives, and academic partnerships with associate degree nursing programs across Kansas and the region. Dr. Williams teaches and serves as lead faculty for several RN to BSN courses and has been instrumental in advancing online nursing education through course redesign, implementation of innovative learning technologies, and adoption of evidence-based teaching practices.

Nationally, Dr. Williams serves as Co-Director of the National RN to Baccalaureate Faculty Forum (NRFF) and has contributed extensively to initiatives supporting RN to Baccalaureate education. She co-led a national crosswalk and gap analysis of the AACN Essentials and NCLEX test plans and is co-editor of the 2025 NRFF Position Statement published through the American Association of Colleges of Nursing. Her scholarship includes publications on RN to Baccalaureate faculty needs, curriculum implementation, and educational innovation. Dr. Williams is an active member of planning teams and an invited speaker for national RN to Baccalaureate conferences, workshops, and webinars, including programs focused on implementing the AACN Essentials, reimagining RN to Baccalaureate education, and addressing emerging trends in academic progression for registered nurses. 

Stephen D. Heglund, PhD, MSN, RN, APRN 
Professor & RN-BSN Program Coordinator 
AdventHealth University  

Dr. Steve Heglund currently serves as a Professor at AdventHealth University in Orlando, Florida where he coordinates the RN-BSN Program. He brings more than 30 years of critical and emergency care experience as a bedside nurse and nurse practitioner to nursing education. In previous roles as a Coordinator, Director, and Assistant Dean, he gained extensive experience in the management of BSN completion programs including RN-BSN, RN-MSN, and Concurrent ASN-BSN programs in both fully distant and hybrid modalities for the past 25 years. During this time, he has managed the growth of programs from partially to fully online with op portunities for students to partake in face-to-face learning as an available option. He has also broadened the practice experiences of the RN student completing the BSN that address the demands of highly varied needs for nursing in the communities they will serve as BSN prepared Registered Nurses. Dr. Heglund also serves AACN as an Essentials Coach and consults with member schools to fine tune curriculum and provide professional development for faculty. He is an award-winning faculty advisor, course designer, instructor, author, and speaker on subjects pertaining to innovative learning, advising, and nursing program management.

Joan M. Stanley, PhD, NP, FAANP, FAAN
Contractor & Senior Advisor to AACN President/CEO 

Dr. Stanley recently retired as the Chief Academic Officer at the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN). During her 35-year tenure at AACN she served as AACN’s lead on numerous nursing education initiatives, including the re-envisioning of the AACN Essentials and now the Essentials implementation and transition to competency-based education. She has led the development of major position statements on a variety of issues, including the Future Vision for Academic Nursing, the Research-Focused Doctorate, development of the DNP degree, and the creation of a new master’s prepared clinician - Clinical Nurse Leader. Since their inception, she has facilitated the multiorganizational work of the APRN Consensus Workgroup, APRN LACE Network and the National Task Force for Quality NP Education. For the past 55 years, she has been instrumental in the shaping of professional nursing education and practice policies and regulations. She has received many awards and honors from nursing organizations and government agencies. She has published numerous articles, chapters, monographs and policy reports. She held a faculty position, 1977 to 1982, in the Adult Primary Care NP Program at the University of Maryland and maintained an adult primary care practice from 1973 to 2018 at the University of Maryland Health System. She received her PhD in 1990 from the University of Maryland at College Park with a focus on higher education policy and organization. She hold s a master’s degree in nursing education from the University of MD at Baltimore, her NP certificate from the U MD, and her BSN from Duke University.  

Speakers

Wanda Thruston, DNP, APRN, RN
Director of Access and Engagement 
American Association of Colleges of Nursing

Dr. Wanda Thruston, Director of Access and Engagement at AACN, is a national and international leader in academic nursing and advancing fair and just access to health and well-being for all, with expertise in institutional transformation, leadership development, and systems-level strategy. A Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholar Fellow, she brings decades of experience in clinical practice with under-resourced populations, health policy, and academic leadership.

At AACN, Dr. Thruston led the development and implementation of the Ecosystem of Excellence in Academic Nursing, a strategic framework designed to enhance institutional effectiveness and promote the success of students, staff, and faculty. She provides technical assistance, training, and consultation to HRSA-funded nursing schools and AACN member institutions—supporting strategies to expand access, strengthen student achievement, improve the institutional climate, and build academic environments where all individuals feel supported and prepared to succeed.

Previously, she served as Special Assistant to the Dean at Indiana University School of Nursing, where she led the development of the Diversity Strategic Plan and co-created a university-wide pathway for DEI faculty promotion. She also led a large-scale assessment of health and well-being for Indiana’s second-largest K-12 district to to inform fair and effective resource allocation that meets the needs of all students. Dr. Thruston is committed to advancing environments where students, staff, and faculty thrive. 

Brigit Carter, PhD, RN, CCRN, FADLN, FAAN
Chief Access and Engagement Officer
American Association of Colleges of Nursing

Dr. Brigit Carter, Chief Access and Engagement Officer, joined American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) in February 2023. She is Professor Emerita at the Duke University School of Nursing, where she served as the Associate Dean for Diversity and Inclusion from 2018-2023. From 2015-2018, she served as the Director of the DUSON Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing (ABSN) program. Dr. Carter earned her BSN at North Carolina Central University (NCCU) in 1998, her Master of Science in Nursing Education from University of North Carolina at Greensboro in 2002, and her PhD in Nursing from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2009.

Her current educational research is focused on understanding experiences of students with microaggressions and development of strategies to mitigate the impact of microaggressions. She also has a focus on strategies to increase historically marginalized students in nursing and understand individual level social determinants that are barriers to achieving nursing education. Dr. Carter is a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing, an Atlantic Fellow for Health Equity, and a Duke Teaching for Equity fellow. Dr. Carter retired from the U.S. Navy as a Commander after 28 years of service in January 2018.